In the mining industry, mining equipment, particularly coal mining equipment, includes a cutting head, a conveyor, and coal loading arms for directing the coal removed by the cutting head to the conveyor. FIG. 1 shows one type of mining equipment 10 that employs a cutting head 1 and a conveyor assembly 3. These continuous mining machines are well known in the prior art and a more detailed description of all of the features thereof is not deemed necessary for understanding of the invention.
FIG. 2 shows a view of a part of the machine 10 of FIG. 1 that is relevant to the invention. In FIG. 2, a pan 5 is positioned beneath the cutting head 1 and a pair of coal loading arms 7 (hereinafter loading arm assembly). The loading arm assemblies are arranged horizontally and rotate to direct coal to the conveyor 9 in the center of the pan 5. The ends of the coal loading arm assemblies are subject to much abrasive wear. In this regard, it is known to put wear plates on the ends of the arms of the assemblies.
In operation, the bottom of the loading arm assemblies that face the pan wear and this wear increases the gap between the bottom surface of the loading arm assembly and a top surface of the pan. This increase in the gap reduces the amount of coal that is swept into the conveyor. In fact, wear on the loading arm assemblies can reduce the rate of coal conveying by as much as one ton per minute.
As such, a need exists to improve the operation of these types of machines with respect to the loading arm assembly operation. The present invention responds to this need by the use of a specially configured wear resistant end that reduces the wear on the bottom of the loading arm assembly as well as protecting the wear resistant configuration so that its lifetime is extended.